Report – The Cord brand might see a revival after eight decades

The defunct American luxury manufacturer might pull a Phoenix on us, mostly thanks to a new law and under the guidance of its owner – Houston area oil industry consultant Craig Corbell.

The business man has owned the rights since 2014 and the company could restart production as early as next year thanks in part to the Low Volume Motor Vehicle Manufacturers act. “Until now it was cost prohibitive to manufacture these cars profitably,” Corbell said in a statement. “But now that expensive high speed crash testing, for example, is no longer required to manufacture low runs of replicas, this makes tremendous sense.” Back in the day, Cord was considered the embodiment of the future of automobile – coming off with revolutionary advancements back in 1929 like front-wheel drive and hidden headlights. The Cord brand was killed off back in 1932 by parent Auburn, revived in 1936 and then again shut down in 1937.

Eight decades later, it’s on the verge of coming back. The law, passed last year, allows manufacturers like Cord, DeLorean, and AC, as well as others, to start building replicas of original vehicles with modern engines and drivetrains. The DMC-12 and AC Cobra are also expected to come back to life next year, complete with GM V8 crate engines.